High altitude northern ecosystems are especially vulnerable to the effects of climate change. The project focuses on three species that are likely to face challenges as the planet warms: wolverine (Gulo gulo), alpine pika (Ochotona alpina), and the Eurasian nutcracker (Nucifraga caryocatactes.) None of these species has been studied in Mongolia, so our work represents the first attempt to gather data about basic ecology as well as climate sensitivity.

Our work in Mongolia uses similar study design to research being done on identical or similar species in the greater Yellowstone ecosystem (GYE) of the US. The GYE and Mongolia share ecosystem characteristics and many species. Wolverines, North American pikas (O. princeps) and Clark’s nutcrackers (N. columbiana) have all become the focus of attention in recent years because they are climate sensitive.